Indians Pitcher John Axford Makes Perfect Oscars Predictions

Indeed, John Axford was lights out with his Oscars predictions Sunday night.

In keeping with his annual tradition, the Cleveland Indians reliever posted his winning predictions to Facebook prior to the show. Since 2011, Axford has gone down the list, giving his selections as to who will win each category.

After making 14 of 15 correct selections in 2013, the 30-year-old right-hander was untouchable this year, notes Joe Reedy of Fox Sports.

Axford expanded his picks to 18 this year because he wanted more of a challenge.

The present author was too busy bathing in the sultry, nihilistic goodness of True Detective to tune in to this year’s award show. However, he finds himself in the awkward position of agreeing with Axford’s selection of Matthew McConaughey for "Best Actor."

Three years ago, you would’ve been tarred, feathered and beaten with a big, wet salmon had you picked McConaughey to outshine Tom Hanks and every other actor in Hollywood. Now it makes sense. The world is strange.

While McConaughey might’ve been an obvious pick for some, Axford’s ability to nail the less mainstream categories was what separated him from the rest. He correctly picked some hard ones, including “Best Makeup and Hairstyling,” “Best Editing” and “Best Foreign Language.”

So what does this all mean for the Indians? Well, nothing—unless they’re planning movie trivia night. Impact on the team isn’t the point.

The point is Axford beat the entertainment professionals at their own game. According to Reedy, "Entertainment Weekly's Anthony Breznican was 15 of 18."

If his pitches are anywhere near this accurate, Axford is in for an awesome season.